Hat attachment



Patented Dec. 9,1919.

WITNESSES: I

INVENTOR ATTORNE S ornamental appearance of the hat.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY A. RUST, OF HOPEWELL, VIRGINIA.

HAT ATTACHMENT.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, I'IENRY A. RUST, a citizen of the United States of America, and-a resident of Hopewell, county of Prince George, and State of Virginia, have invented certain new and useful Improv'epair of flexible members preferably steel wires a, although any other flexible material, such as reed, ratan orcelluloid, may be employed; and it is obvious also that the wire or other members may be suitably covered with a fabric of a pleasing color so as not to be conspicuous in the hat and so also that they may, in fact, add to the These members are attached together at their ends in any suitable manner. In the drawing, I have shown them attached by a thin flat piece of. sheet metal 6, whose edges are crimped over the ends of the wires to thus rigidly secure themhtogether. The wire members are separated a suitable distance so as to receive between them the longitudinal" central crease in the hat-crown, as now is vogue. The wires are sufficiently separated .to receive this central longitudinal crease in the crown, and they are sufficiently light and flexible to avoid givin any stiff and unnatural appearance to t e crown.

They are elastic, 1,. e., of springy wire,

ratan, celluloid or reed, so as to naturally shape themselves to the crown, though in all cases, it will be understood, they must, not be sufiiciently stiff or rigid to give an unnatural shape to the crown .or prevent crushing-in of the crown upon the application of unusual force. In other words, these supporting members will be sufficiently flexihis in any event to permit the crown of the hat to be temporarily indented or Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 9, 1919.

Application filed January 8. 1919.. Serial No. 270,122.

crushed without injury to the wires, and it will be understood also that these devices may be mad separately from the hat and sold as attachments. It will also be understood that the elasticity of the wires permits them to be bowed or flexed into shape by the retailer. when sold to the wearer and fitted into his hat, these light, thin wires insuring a nic fitting to the particular conformation of the crown and without in the least distorting the crown.

It will be understood also that when the device is applied to the hat, the ends of the distendingmembers and the means for fas toning them together will lie between the sweat-band and the body of the crown, so

as not only to be concealed from view, but

also so that they will not render the device uncomfortable to the wearer, it being under stood that in all cases the distending members and their fastening devices will be made sufficiently thin and light to avoid any undue bulging of the hat-band, or exert any um-omfortable pressure on the head of the wearer. In practice, I have found that it is easily possible to make the ends of the bows and their fastening devices sulficiently thin and light in weight to permit them to b so completely protected by the thickness of the sweat-band asto be entirely 'unnoticeable to the wearer. v

The nature and scope of the invention v having been thus indicated and its preferred embodiment,having been specifically described what is claimed as new is:

In a hat shape-retainer of the class set forth, a pair of thin light elastic laterallyyieldable members. said members being spaced apart, a pair of thin plates secured to the ends of said elastic members and fOI'HI-y ing anchoring means for said elastic members and holding them in their spaced relation and adapted to be inserted between the sweat-band and the crown, said elastic members being adapted to be flexed into a curved position when inserted ina hat and to fit H. IRUST' their entire length against the crown of the 

